This invention relates generally to front loading refuse containers and, more particularly, to an apparatus for selectably opening or closing a lid pivotally mounted to the refuse container.
Heavy refuse containers mounted on wheels and configured to be lifted by large refuse trucks are widely used by apartment complexes and commercial businesses. These refuse containers typically include a large bin with one or more heavy lids pivotally coupled to the top edge of a rear wall. A common difficulty frequently encountered by users of these refuse containers is raising and holding a lid while depositing refuse into the bin. This difficulty is magnified where multiple items need to be deposited or where both hands are needed in order to deposit large items into the bin.
Various devices have been proposed in the art for raising the lid of a refuse container. While U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,892,218 and 5,011,036 disclose the use of foot pedal devices for lifting a refuse container lid, no mechanism is shown for holding or locking the lid in an open position during deposit of material into the bin. Further, existing devices do not provide a leveraged configuration for easy manipulation of the lid.
Therefore, it is desirable to have an apparatus for lifting a lid of a refuse container which can selectively hold the lid in an open position while depositing refuse therein. It is further desirable to have a lifting apparatus which uses a leveraged configuration for easy manipulation of the lid.